What's to win or lose this weekend?

Only 24 hours ahead of the first practice session, Renault and McLaren are preparing their cars- and ready to fight for the constructors' title. The McLaren Mercedes Team has only 2 points more in the Constructors' Championship than the Mild Seven Renault F1 Team. This weekend there's a lot at stake.

Two weeks have passed since Fernando Alonso concluded the battle for the world drivers’ championship with a podium finish in Brazil. Now, the F1 circus has arrived in Suzuka for the penultimate round of the 2005 championship – the longest in the sport’s history, with 19 rounds. And even though the battle between Fernando and Kimi has been resolved in the Spaniard’s favour, there is still plenty to play for this weekend.

First of all, everything is still to play for in the constructors’ championship between Renault and McLaren. The men in grey took the lead in the title race for the first time in 2005 after the last race in Brazil, but the gap is just two points: with a maximum of 36 points still to be won, nothing is fixed. Further behind, third place is also still in the balance – Ferrari’s total of 98 points is just 17 ahead of Toyota.

On the drivers’ front, Juan Pablo Montoya and Michael Schumacher are now on equal points for third place in the drivers’ championship. The Colombian has the momentum right now, having won more races than the German since Melbourne. Giancarlo Fisichella, fifth on 45 points, will also be looking out for Jarno Trulli in 6th place, and just two points behind him,

Finally, the Japanese round of the championship is an important weekend for lots of different people. Renault will be keen to perform well at the home race of their title sponsor, Mild Seven; Toyota and Honda are also on home turf and eager to put in an impressive performance; while Bridgestone will want to erase the memories of a difficult season. Ferrari showed signs of good form in Brazil, and the Scuderia will be hoping to shine this weekend before turning its sights to 2006…